Residents Say Apartment Building Still Not Secure Months After Assault

CHICAGO (CBS) — The residents of a North Side apartment building say their landlord has done the bare minimum to improve security since a tenant was sexually assaulted in the basement laundry room last January.

The building is on the 1200 block of West North Shore, near Loyola’s campus.

Once again, the alderman is stepping in to make sure more improvements are made.

CBS 2’s Dana Kozlov reports you can still walk right through the front gate of the building and right into the lobbies. Most of the internal lobby doors are now secure, but not all.

49th Ward Alderman Joe Moore says that is a violation of city building code.

“Still clearly not what it should be,” said Ald. Moore.

Landlord Rick Olsen was slapped with several code violations after a 24-year-old woman was robbed and sexually assaulted in the laundry room last winter.

Some issues have been fixed. A broken window has been repaired and security cameras have been installed, but there are still concerned.

“We all kind of want this to be hooked up again,” said Christine Thompson. “I think he only kind of did what he needed to do.”

“We don’t really expect much of our landlord. At this point we just have to try to look out for each other,” said Matt Devita.

Olsen contacted CBS 2 and said he’s done everything he can thus far to improve security and will fix the current code violation. He says he’s also ordered new exterior doors and an intercom system and lock for the outside gate, but is waiting for a contractor to do the work.

Dana Kozlov is a general assignment reporter for CBS 2 Chicago. She joined the station in August 2003, from WGN-TV, where she had served as a general assignment reporter and fill-in anchor since 1995.
Her live reports from DeKalb, IL during CBS 2...